Beginning with the Ubume Bird Chapter 105

Chapter 105: Chapter 4 Culinary Skill: Straw Raincoat Blade!

The smoking man staggered backwards, and with the Ring Dragon showing no mercy, his thin-spined kitchen knife had just been drawn back when the longsword was already nearing his face.

“So fast, Feather Class?”

Blocking a strike with a weapon is naturally quicker than slashing, and the kitchen knife is much lighter than the Ring Dragon, so the man's kitchen knife barely tangled with the Ring Dragon Sword's blade. To his surprise, the oncoming Ring Dragon made a rolling motion, slicing right under the handle of the kitchen knife.

“Let go!”

The man made a split-second decision and dropped the knife to save his hand.

His kitchen knife was sent flying into the air by the Ring Dragon, and without anything to depend on, the man could only watch as the longsword slashed towards his chin, silently chanting in his mind:

“Glutinous rice ball.”

As the longsword lifted into the air, to Li Yan's incredulity, the man's head turned into a ball of dough that had been slashed open, revealing the man's face only after the Ring Dragon cut through the dough.

“Exploding rice.”

A blast of air erupted from beneath the smoking man's feet, the sound startling even Li Yan, who hesitated in his pursuit. The man flew back more than ten meters, only bleeding from a gash on the side of his nose after landing.

“What the hell?”

Li Yan couldn't quite grasp the depths of this person for a moment. He could vaguely see a sheep-headed, human-bodied Exotic Beast standing behind the man.

Yan Fu's voice drifted slowly over.

“You have faced Taotie's Power!”

Taotie, a person of the Jinyun Clan, is extremely gluttonous.

“You have gained some information.”

Name: Cha Xiaodao

Talent: Culinary Skill 79%, Sword Skill 59%

Status: Culinary Skill

Skills: ???

Heritage: Gluttonous Heart·Culinary Skill

[Gluttonous Heart·Culinary Skill]

Type: Heritage

Quality: Rare

Upon activation, mastered culinary skills will be transformed into corresponding combat skills.

Note: Cooking and fighting are two different things after all; one still needs to train in martial arts.

The quick skirmish in Main Street Alley with Li Yan had ended in the blink of an eye; added to the darkness of the night, A Fleeting Glimpse had not provided any news, only that the man's heritage seemed to be water-related.

But this time was different, with a direct confrontation between the two, Li Yan had also seen the man's techniques clearly and had thus gained information about him.

After reading the information, Li Yan was amused. This heritage was interesting—a chef from one of the four Exotic Beasts?

Of course, Li Yan also understood that it was not so simple. Just like his Gu Huo Bird—if “Blood Dip” originated from the legend of stealing babies with a drop of blood, then the description of the “Heavenly Emperor's maiden” who “hides by day and flies by night” was not reflected in him.

Similarly, the “Culinary Skill” on the other person did not mean that all inheritors of “Taotie” were chefs.

On the other side, Cha Xiaodao's scalp tingled.

“This guy's expertise in swordsmanship is unreasonably high…”

He glanced at the kitchen knife at Li Yan's feet. Feeling his gaze, Li Yan stepped on the blade and flicked it behind him into a water channel, where the knife hit the railing with a crisp clang.

“Gone.”

Li Yan shrugged.

“You little rascal…”

Cha Xiaodao took the cigarette from his lips and threw it on the ground.

“Exploding rice.”

He sprinted towards Li Yan, moving so fast it was hard to follow. Without thinking, Li Yan thrust the Ring Dragon Sword straight forward.

“Dumpling.”

Crack~

The man, who shot over like a streak of metal, twisted his body incredibly at the last moment before hitting the Ring Dragon Sword. He managed to press against the blade with his chest and reach Li Yan!

The sharp edge of the sword cut a bloody gash on the man's body, but only sliced through a layer of greasy skin, as the man's palms struck towards Li Yan's eyes from both sides.

“Crack an egg.”

The man's low shout even reached Li Yan's ears.

“So impressive with that twin peaks ear-piercing… I see you've got some skill…”

Li Yan scoffed inwardly as his right foot kicked off the ground, propelling him forward. His forehead smashed hard against Cha Xiaodao's nose. Specks of blood splattered onto Li Yan's face, and Cha Xiaodao's vision darkened.

“Rolling donkey.”

Li Yan drew his sword and flicked his wrist, the blade zigzagging three times through the air, all of them slashing the man's body. Only the last stab aimed at Cha Xiaodao's neck missed, brushing past.

“Puffed rice burst.”

Cha Xiaodao ducked and darted under Li Yan's armpit, sprinting toward the kitchen knife by the side of the water channel.

Only when a streak of sword light caught the corner of his eye did a chill cross his heart.

“He can keep up with me!”

There were deep blood streaks on Cha Xiaodao's neck, elbow, and back, yet his speed was unimpaired. Li Yan thought to himself that had he sustained these three wounds, his strength would have diminished by at least thirty percent, which gave Li Yan some food for thought.

“He's a tough fur class by nature, compensating his lack of speed with his inherited abilities. Not a bad strategy.”

Li Yan, mid-leap, thrust forward with his Ring Dragon Sword as Cha Xiaodao, who had just grabbed the kitchen knife, also turned and swung his blade.

The Ring Dragon Sword drove straight in, piercing the man's lower abdomen, while the kitchen knife was blocked by the sword hilt.

Li Yan stared at Cha Xiaodao's stern face when suddenly, an indescribably intense pain shot up from his forearm. Even with Li Yan's willpower, he couldn't help but let out a painful roar.

Spiraling blood trails spread from Li Yan's wrist to his elbow; chunks of flesh peeled away and hung loosely over his meridians and bones, creating a gruesomely striking image.

Culinary Skill: Straw Raincoat Blade.

“Puffed rice burst.”

The Ring Dragon Sword was knocked askew by a current of air. The man braced his lower leg on the ground, curling into a ball, heading straight for Li Yan's throat, his eyes full of exhausted bloodshot streaks.

Something's wrong!

Dumpling.

A layer of white dough enveloped Cha Xiaodao entirely, but to no avail; a muffled sound came from within the dough.

“Bang~”

A layer of azure ice shone through the dough.

Blood Dip (Nine Phoenix Enhancement)

When the explosion occurred, another 30% of freezing damage was added.

Freezing damage impedes healing, disperses strength, and stiffens movement.

Li Yan flicked his left hand, tearing a yellow talisman paper, and the wound on his right forearm visibly healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

“Deep-fried Dough Sticks.”

A golden light shot out from within the dough, turning Cha Xiaodao completely golden as he bled from seven orifices but fled swiftly.

“Puffed rice burst puffed rice burst puffed rice burst puffed rice burst.”

As Cha Xiaodao made several sharp turns in the air, seemingly about to escape, Li Yan had no intention of pursuing.

He licked his teeth, spitting out the remnants of carrot stuck between them.

“This man's Awakening Degree is no less than mine, even possibly having broken through the first peak. It's just the beginning; there's no need to fight to the death with someone like this.”

Li Yan walked into the hardware store that the man had just left and thoroughly blocked the entrance.

“With over a hundred Yan Fu wandering about, they can't all be this strong. 'Those people' planning to catch me off guard would likely tamper with the showdown at the twelve places later on, arranging the location on repressing items disadvantageous to me. Am I just unlucky, having encountered two wanderers not so easy to kill?”

Li Yan glanced around the hardware store, at the parts shattered beyond repair on the floor, the chisels, wrenches, all chopped into several pieces, and a bicycle forcibly stripped of two wheels still trembling like a fish out of water.

“Ghost Hardware Store, huh? Seems like he smashed through it.”

Li Yan pulled out a stool from under the table. The stool moved slightly at first but became docile under Li Yan's gaze.

Sitting down with great aplomb, Li Yan took out the half-eaten carrot and began to crunch away, apparently having no intention of continuing his exploration.

Two welded iron racks had about six or seven layers with boxes of various parts placed on them—plastic gloves, iron rings, cranks, nuts, pliers, and so forth. Yet, in the layer right beneath Li Yan's feet, a pair of terrified eyes appeared.

He won't discover it; that man just now didn't notice either…

My Crisp Bone Skill is at a 76% proficiency, who would think a person could be hidden inside here.

The person inside the rack tried to encourage herself, unaware that a black beak bird, hardly larger than a mosquito, was standing on the ground, staring intently at her.

Chapter end